13.2 Low Carbon Energy Use
13.2.1 LOW CARBON ENERGY TRACKING
Academic institutions and colleges are important educators for climate actions and sustainable environmental management but their operations themselves generate CO2 emission that needs proper accounting and reporting. With this, Benguet State University (BSU) tracked the amount of low carbon energy used across the university.
For 2023, BSU used 1,008.99 MWh or 3,632.36 GJ of electrical energy for its different operations. The monthly electric consumption did not vary greatly ranging at 74.38 – 101.58 MWh (Figure 1A). Lowest electricity use was recorded in the third quarter of the year, with the lowest in September. The total electric consumption of the university was equivalent to 1,092 Mg CO2 emission (Figure 1B).
| Table 1. Electric consumption of BSU per month | ||
|---|---|---|
| MONTH | ELECTRIC CONSUMPTION | |
| MWh | GJ | |
| January | 101.58 | 365.71 |
| February | 94.16 | 338.99 |
| March | 81.90 | 294.85 |
| April | 88.57 | 318.85 |
| May | 79.98 | 287.92 |
| June | 74.38 | 267.76 |
| July | 78.58 | 282.89 |
| August | 84.46 | 304.07 |
| September | 69.75 | 251.10 |
| October | 83.80 | 301.69 |
| November | 85.81 | 308.90 |
| December | 86.01 | 309.64 |
| TOTAL | 1,008.99 | 3,632.36 |
Another low carbon energy being used are the solar-powered outdoor lights installed in the campus. The total energy consumption from these for 2023 was 73 KwH or 0.26 GJ. Additionally, the university is located in a highly elevated valley with semi-temperate climate. Thus not using air conditioning units results to saving electricity amounting to 1047.82 MwH or 3,772.15 GJ per year.
Other (Non-low) Energy Consumptions
The diesel consumption of the university is mainly for local travel to fulfill its four-fold function namely instruction, research, extension and production. The monthly diesel consumption 1,520 – 9,084 L with higher values in March, October and November and least during December (Figure 2A). The total diesel consumption of the university for year 2023 is 7,514 L that is equivalent to CO2 emission of 203.50 Mg C (Figure 2B).
Another energy consumption of the university is the use of liquid petroleum gas (LPG) in the canteen, bakery and food processing centers being maintained by the university. The total LPG used for year 2023 is 6,335 L which is equivalent to 9.57 Mg CO2 emission (Figure 3).
